Media Culture Project: So You Think You Can...Shake Your Ass?

The primetime television show “So You Think You Can Dance” is a reality show much like American Idol in which dancers compete to win the hearts and the votes of Americans to be crowned “America’s Favorite Dancer.” While on the surface, the show provides an opportunity for aspiring dancers to gain the recognition of renowned choreographers and the hope to build careers for themselves, behind the stunning performances and the excitement of watching to see if your favorite dancer wins lies a sense of Raunch Culture rooted in the role of female dancers. In the video clip posted above, the female dancers are dressed in very revealing and sexy clothing while the male dancers are completely covered. Furthermore, the female dancers perform very sexual moves like humping the floor while the men stick to relatively non-sexual dancing. However not only do female dancers enjoy wearing skimpy outfits and strutting across the stage showing off their sexiness and liveliness, but they actually embrace this role and try to be more sexy because that is what it takes to make it in the dance world. Levy would argue that these women are buying into this Raunch Culture because they are objectifying themselves and their bodies in order to gain the attention of both male and female spectators. However Levy would not put the blame on the women but rather the dance culture itself. Female dancers have historically been objectified and have flaunted their bodies as a means of self-expression and passion, and young women have strived to look and dance sexy because they have been programmed and socialized to think that successful dancers look and act this way. Levy would also stress that while these dancers may find this expression of dance liberating and empowering, or simply they do it because they like to, they are, whether intentionally or unintentionally, devaluing women by participating in this culture. As a result, even though female dancers may think they are being respected for their talent, by dressing themselves in hardly any clothing and dancing in a way that mirrors sex, spectators begin to pay attention to this sexiness that they portray rather than their dancing abilities.

Another important point Levy would point out is that in the clip you don’t see men wearing skimpy outfits or humping the floor, but instead they are fully clothed and do not dance in a way that imitates sex. According to Levy, the issue is not that women may enjoy liberating themselves through dancing and looking sexy to grab the attention of spectators which no doubt gives them an ego boost, but the problem is that men do not behave in the same way. In order for men to make it in the dance world, they do not necessarily have to be the most attractive or well-built guy, as seen by the male dancers on the video, but instead they are judged solely on their talent (and personalities for the sake of reality television). Women, however, must have very different qualifications. As seen in the video, most of the women are of about average height but are very skinny and look good in what appears to be a superwoman’s costume. Thus here arises a new conflict: are female dancers trying to be skinnier and sexier because that is what society tells them makes more successful dancers, or do female dancers just happen to be skinny and sexy because it is practical? This is essentially the debate between practicality versus selling out to the system. Are female dancers selling out to the system by agreeing to wear these skimpy outfits and dancing in a way that suggests sex or are these outfits and movements just the nature of dance culture? I find it hard to believe that Wonder Woman outfits which emphasize women’s breasts and butts is practical for dancing, but in all honesty, people, both men and women, would much rather watch beautiful women shaking their asses in less clothing than watching them dance in baggy sweat-suits. And while the dancers may say they enjoy wearing the costumes because it makes them feel sexy and powerful, the only driving factor behind these misconceptions of empowerment and attention is that our society associates sexiness with adoration. Thus when viewers see dancers that are considered sexy and hot, they will approve of them and cheer for them which consequently makes the dancers feel good about themselves. But why not let the talent of these dancers alone bring in the attention and feelings of empowerment? These dancers are already amazing only by their abilities to move their bodies the way they do, and putting them in skimpy and sexy outfits not only objectifies these women, but it takes the attention away from their dancing and onto their appearance.

I generally tend to side with Levy, especially on her claim that the problem is so deeply rooted in society that a solution can only come from a change in social values and norms. Although dance is a form of art and dancers usually are acting these roles which in some cases may be an expression of themselves or some other character, dance still reflects culture, thus the way we perceive men and women in dance is very similar to the way we perceive them in society. Thus this Raunch Culture that appears in the dance world is inevitably a reflection of the Raunch Culture that exists in our society and as Levy would argue, the problem is not that women want to be successful dancers and will look and act sexy in order to achieve these goals, but that being sexy is the way to make it. However, now I’m forced to ask myself, do women really have any other choice? In a culture like dance where it is expected that women are comfortable wearing Wonder Woman outfits and straddling the floor, if aspiring dancers are not willing to dance like this or wear these costumes, they are simply kicked to the curb and replaced by another dancer. So for young girls whose dream is to become a professional dancer, do they really have any other choice but to buy into the system and embrace these roles that the dance world has defined to be acceptable? Even if a dance studio were to recognize the problem behind dressing female dancers in sexually-implicit costumes and tried to create dance performances where women were actually clothed and danced in a way that was not suggestive of sex, would their studio succeed? Maybe, but wouldn’t it be much easier for female dancers to just give in to the dance world and put on a skimpy outfit just so they have the opportunity to do what they love? I think this is where Levy wants to make her point loud and clear: second-wave feminists have tried to find a solution for women by buying into the patriarchal system and embracing the role of the strong, hot, sexual woman and celebrating this woman. However by giving into a system that pays more attention to the sex appeal of a woman than her talent still devalues women and consequently offers no real solution. Yet because these values and norms are so deeply rooted into our culture, the only solution seems to be to change the culture and thereby its values.